Design Document
Indie Brawl is a multiplayer, 2-dimensional fighting game that pits some of the most famous characters from indie games against each other. The game will have simple and intuitive controls, a wide variety of characters and attacks, and fast-paced battles with platforming elements. The game should be easy to learn, but have enough depth that it's enjoyable for a broad range of players. Gameplay: Each battle will consist of two to eight characters battling either as individuals or teams. Two (or more) players can use the keyboard, and two will be able to use Xbox 360 controllers (more are possible with xpadder or joy2key). The remaining characters can be AI controlled. The objectives for each battle vary by game mode. There will also be an option to fight with infinite health, so you can only be killed by being knocked off the stage. At least the following will be included: Standard Mode- Each player has a set number of lives. Time Mode- Score a point for every kill, but lose a point for every death. Frag Mode- Score a point for every kill. Whoever reaches a set number of kills first wins. Team Standard Mode- As standard mode, but with teams. Team Time Mode- As time mode, but each team shares a single score. Team Frag Mode- As frag mode, but each team shares a single number of kills. Tug of War Mode- The battle consists of two teams. There is a single bar at the top of the screen with a marker in the middle. Dealing damage moves it in one direction, and taking damage moves it to the other. Win by moving the marker all the way to your opponents’ side. Attacks will damage, stun and knock back the enemy. Bigger enemies will not be knocked back as far or be stunned as long (and may be immune to weak stunning attacks). Badly wounded enemies will be knocked back further and stunned longer. If a character runs out of hit points, it loses a life. Items will periodically appear on the battlefield. Some are used as soon as they are touched (such as healing items), some provide a temporary benefit, and some are single use attacks (mostly thrown items). Items will not be so powerful that they completely change the course of the battle. Controls: Controls will be customizable, and players can choose to use either the keyboard or an Xbox 360 controller (recommended for more than two players to avoid key-locking). The following key will be used for attacks: >: Right <: Left ^: Up v: Down A: Standard Attack S: Special Attack The controls will be as follows: >: Move right <: Move left ^: Jump/Double Jump (some characters may be able to double jump more than once) v: Fall through platforms A, >A, ^A, vA, S, >S, ^S, vS: Attacks. Some attacks will function differently in the air and on the ground. Some characters may have some situational attacks, usable if they’re climbing or grabbing, for example. Generally, special attacks are slower, have a larger area and range, and/or create some unique or unusual effect. Some special attacks are unblockable. Standard attacks are not necessarily restricted to basic melee attacks (a ranged specialist such as Liero may have a gun usable as a basic attack, for example). When carrying a thrown weapon, attacking will throw the weapon in that direction. Characters: Though each character uses the same basic controls, their attacks will be quite varied. Each character should play differently from the others. There will be no clones. Each character's move list should follow this basic pattern: A - weak, quick attack >A - slower, stronger attack with good reach ^A - attack aimed upwards vA - attack aimed downwards S - generally a projectile >S - an unusual attack of some sort ^S - recovery move, lifts character upwards vS - defensive move Graphics and Music Graphics will be made in the following style of pixel art, originally created by Oracle. Each stage will have its own music. The music will, in most cases, be a remix of the song from the level the stage is based on, or another song from that game.